conclusions

What is a Conclusion? Conclusions are in many ways similar to introductions: they do not present new relevant information. Instead, they guide the reader away from the essay. Conclusions have two components: narrow 1. A final analysis or interpretation of the paper. Either restate your thesis or sum up the general meaning of your overall argument, explanation, or description. 2. An ending comment, such as an interesting idea or your personal interpretation of the entire paper. Narrow Broad

Ways to conclude an essay Echo or continue what you did in the intro’s “hook”: Did you tell a personal anecdote? Finish the story or suggest solutions! Did you use a statistic? Use the essay’s arguments to reinterpret the numbers in a new way! Use a quotation If you opened your paper with a quote, you can finish it with one as well! Make a suggestion or prediction In a paper discussing reasons for domestic violence, you could offer a few suggestions for overcoming the causes.

Your Conclusion Should….. NOT just repeat what you’ve already said If your conclusion says almost exactly the same thing as your introduction, it may indicate that you have not done enough critical thinking during the course of your essay (since you ended up right back where you started). By the end of your essay, you should have worked through your ideas enough so that your reader understands what you have argued and is ready to hear the larger point (i.e. the big ―so what?) you want to make about your topic. Your conclusion should create a sense of development or movement to a more complex understanding of the subject of your paper.

Your conclusion should…. Try to pull everything together Your conclusion should serve as the climax of your paper. Save your strongest analytical points for the end of your essay, and use them to drive your conclusion.

Conclusions cont. Don’t be afraid to say something new It is fine to introduce new information or quotations in your conclusion, as long as the new points grow FROM your argument. New points might be more general, answering the “so what?” question or tying your essay’s point to the “bigger picture” HOWEVER: avoid making new claims that need additional support

Conclusions cont. Don’t be afraid to out with a “bang” Vivid, concrete, or descriptive language is as important in a conclusion as it is elsewhere— perhaps more essential, since the conclusion determines the reader’s last impression of your essay. Do not leave them with the impression that your argument was vague or unsure.

Sample intro Sample conclusion Opening: Welfare was created during the Great Depression to address a rampant epidemic of poverty in the United States. Background: Thousands upon thousands of people could not find work and were starving and the government stepped in to provide assistance. Until poverty is completely eradicated in this country, welfare must stay in place. But an unfortunate by-product of this initially philanthropic institution is generational dependency on the “dole,” which strips the nation’s poor of respect and empowerment and in turn engenders resentment in tax paying citizens. Thesis Statement: In order to keep the welfare system alive and healthy, it must incorporate time limits, more job training programs and incentives to encourage recipients to move beyond the system. Return to the Big Picture: To eliminate welfare would be to deny an essential part of our nation’s ideology, that of offering sanctuary to all in the world who may need it, and it would actual create even more problems in the society. Summary of Relevant Points: Homelessness and crime would rise as the desperate poor try to survive. Welfare should offer incentives to encourage people toward self-sufficiency and to discourage people from taking advantage of the system. A program with time limits should be adopted in order to obliterate the possibility of generational welfare as children watch their parents work towards these goals and have a model to follow. Learning Statement: Welfare must stay in place and reforms must be made to the system before the stress between the recipients and contributors causes the system to break altogether, creating a situation reminiscent of the Great Depression.

Sources: How to Write Better Introductions and Conclusions by Nancy Armstrong and Anne Garrett Created for CLASS & ECLP - Spring 2006 Introductions, conclusions, and thesis statements, University of North Georgia, 2014. http://ung.edu/writing-center/_uploads/files/gainesville/resources/Writing-introductions.pdf